Understanding Proxy Traffic
Proxies route traffic through intermediate servers, hiding the user’s real IP address. While similar to VPNs, proxies come in different forms:
Web Proxies
Browser-based proxies accessed through websites.
SOCKS Proxies
Protocol-level proxies for any traffic type.
Residential Proxies
Traffic routed through real residential IPs - harder to detect.
Mobile Proxies
Traffic through cellular networks - very hard to detect.
Why Proxies Are Used for Abuse
Fraud
- Hide real location
- Bypass fraud detection
- Appear as different users
Scraping
- Rotate IPs to avoid blocking
- Appear as residential traffic
- Evade rate limits
Multi-Accounting
- Create multiple accounts
- Abuse promotions repeatedly
- Bypass bans
Detection Challenges
Residential and mobile proxies are harder to detect than VPNs because they use real consumer IP addresses.
Warning Signs
- Traffic patterns inconsistent with location
- Unusual behavior from “residential” IPs
- High velocity actions from single accounts
- Geographic impossibilities (logins from different continents minutes apart)
Protection with SecurEcommerce
Our detection identifies:
- Data center proxies
- Known proxy services
- VPN services
- Some residential proxy patterns
Combined with behavioral analysis and blocking, you can reduce proxy abuse impact.